CLOUD SERVICES AND PLATFORMS RESEARCH FOR INTERNET OF THINGS APPLICATIONS DEPLOYMENT

Background. Various cloud services and platforms are available to deploy and host IoT applications. Such services and platforms differ in capabilities, cost, complexity and other factors. What cloud services or platforms to select from for an IoT solution is an actual and challenging question. The paper expands in detail on cloud services and platforms research for IoT applications deployment and hosting, and offers a way to find an answer to selecting appropriate cloud services or platforms. Objective. The paper aims to provide an overview of cloud services and platforms for IoT applications deployment and hosting, and propose a method for selecting suitable cloud services or platforms for IoT applications deployment and hosting. Methods. We use theoretical research in the cloud services and platforms area of expertise for building IoT solutions, employing mathematical modelling and decision theory proposed in the functional form with weight coefficients, to select the best option from pre-selected cloud services and platforms based on IoT solution requirements and constraints. Results. The paper thoroughly explores IoT technology evolution, IoT product lifecycle, IoT solution architecture, and cloud service types for IoT solutions hosting. Research delves into public cloud service providers with detailed elaboration on the AWS public cloud services, and reviews platform service providers for implementing IoT solutions. Then, the work breaks down two practical implementation cases of IoT solutions using the Blynk platform and custom hosting services. Furthermore, the study articulates recommendations for developing sustainable IoT solutions and provides examples of selecting an IoT cloud service or platform for three IoT applications across various business domains. As a result, the work proposes a utility-based scoring function for selecting cloud or platform services for deploying and hosting an IoT solution. Conclusions. There’s no one-size-fits-all IoT cloud or platform. The choice depends on IoT solution specifics, requirements and constraints. A utility-based scoring function is proposed to guide cloud provider or platform selection.